Friday, July 9, 2010

wisdom words

звезда

If you are meant to be the one, no matter what happens, nothing is going to change that. Of course you have to work really hard. But there are times when no matter how hard you put effort into something, there are still some things you can't do anything about - Dr. SMS

So impressive!


Wassalam.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

kembara bandung [day 3] - 280610

(Nurul, Aina, Mai, Amy, Yati)
Malaysian friends!
They are very very very friendly. With lotsa talking too!
No wonder Mai suits them well! Haha~

my third day begun early. rent toyota avanza with supir (driver) for half day duration, which had cost us Rp 300,000. quite cheap for 6 person! went to Mount Tangkuban Parahu. It is one of the active volcanoes in the world. Actually, it is near to the city, but the problem here in Indonesia is, the roads, were not really good. Bukan jer bersimpang-siur sebab itu kan kawasan bukit, tapi siap berlopak-lopak juger laa sikit-sikit.. But those did not matter much! As long as I can go to this volcano, I would be satisfied! Why? Coz people said, "If you go to Bandung and you don't go to Tangkuban Parahu, it means that you have not really go to Bandung yet". That is what people said! Not me! Haha~

at the entrance, we were shocked coz the person in charge asked us to pay about Rp 300,000 for the entrance fee! 6 tickets for Rp 300,000?!!! So expensive! but after they were showing their ma3x card, we only had to pay Rp 100,00. One third of the initial entrance fee!!! What a suprised?! [I got escaped!!! Haha~]

As I got down from the car, I could smell the unpleasant sulfur!

Trip members!

This is what I got from Wikipedia. Almost similar to what Aina (one of Mai's housemates who is also studying in ITB) had been storytelling us, but of course, Aina's story was much more detail!

The name translates roughly to "upturning of a boat" or "upturned boat" in Sundanese, referring to the local legend of its creation. The story tells of "Dayang Sumbi", a beauty who lived in West Java. She cast away her son "Sangkuriang" for disobedience, and in her sadness was granted the power of eternal youth by the gods. After many years in exile, Sangkuriang decided to return to his home, long after the two had forgotten and failed to recognize each other. Sangkuriang fell in love with Dayang Sumbi and planned to marry her, only for Dayang Sumbi to recognize his birthmark just as he was about to go hunting. In order to prevent the marriage from taking place, Dayang Sumbi asked Sangkuriang to build a dam on the river Citarum and to build a large boat to cross the river, both before the sunrise. Sangkuriang meditated and summoned mythical ogre-like creatures -buta hejo or green giant(s)- to do his bidding. Dayang Sumbi saw that the tasks were almost completed and called on her workers to spread red silk cloths east of the city, to give the impression of impending sunrise. Sangkuriang was fooled, and upon believing that he had failed, kicked the dam and the unfinished boat, resulting in severe flooding and the creation of Tangkuban perahu from the hull of the boat.

Big thanks to Aina for the great story you told us! :)

hot and spicy steamed potatoes, veggies, and siew mai

betapa lakunya makanan yang dijual mak cik ni!


so, where's the Tangkuban Perahu or the upturned boat?

it should be there!
but look at the fogged mountain!
the boat was hidden!

these are the burned & blackish trees.
might be due to the high content of sulfur in this volcanic area.

and yet, it is still flowering!
Subhanallah.

the volcanic crater of Mount Tangkuban Perahu

with Amy.
we were the first timers!!!

Aina & Amy
and of coz, with the other tourists...

It was quite cold, but the one behing me was wearing short!
I bet the hairs would be standing still... You know, as to maintain the body heat! haha~

the crowd!

zooming in; they are Malaysians!

the hardworking men!

we paid their hardwork!
each scarf costs us Rp 10,000 only!
in other words, it means RM 3.63 only!
haha~

the musholla

after Mount Tangkuban Perahu trip, stopped by to have our lunch. Dare to have Sate Ayam despite ....

the hanged chicken head!

my lunch; Sate Ayam! :P


after that, went to Sari Ater Hot Spring Resort, or better known as Ciater!


ITB friends! sweet sweet memories!

is this candid?

one of the hot springs there.
met a sweet couple from Johor here!

Mai wanted to jump, but into this shallow hot spring!
Aina, you should let Mai's hands off! haha~

peace for flying fox!!! owh yeah!!!

Aina & Amy
fear to height?
tried to be fearless!

haunted house!

went for ATV, but it closed!

nevermind, still can try it out at Sunway Lagoon! :)

mas tebar murtabak yang comel! haha~

murtabak manis!
macam apam balik jer rupanya!!!

our Rp 17,000 dinner
sedap & manis!!!
dan besar jugak!!!

See! Traveling is not only about having fun, but it is a source of obtaining knowledge as well! Not only that, it is also about learning the background of the people from other places.


Wassalam.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

kembara bandung [day 1 & day 2] - 260610 & 270610

"Reading books is important but that is not the only way to obtain knowledge!" - Dr. SMS.

Yeah! Reading is a good habit. No doubt! But I find that my soul suits more to this passion of traveling, rather than reading. I love to travel. It does not matter where i travel; inside, or outside of the country. The more important thing that matters here; I've got to get myself traveling to some unfamiliar places every year. And Insya Allah, I will continue this passion [as I know that I'll get green light from parents and if $$$ is enough].

Last year, I went to Queensland, Australia. Cik Tie's place. Alhamdulillah. Great moment!

And Alhamdulillah, this year, I managed to fly to Bandung, the City of Flowers! [the history said]

On my very first night, created a trouble! From airport, took the airport taxi which had cost me almost Rp 45,000 for 15 minutes drive. As I arrived, I had this instinct. I wanted to check on my passport. And click! The passport was not there! Owh man!!! I carefully checked the bag. Zipped and unzipped the pockets of my blue backpack. No! No! I could not find it. I told Mai. She said that I can be an Indonesian then. haha~ At that point of time, still could made me laughed worriedly. But deep inside my heart, I kept on praying, "O'Allah, please let this vacation be as smooth as before". Mai made a phone call to the taxi we had on our way back from airport to home. The taxi was then called Mai back. Yes! It was there! Alhamdulillah. I had the "sunshine" again!

Stayed at Mai's crib for a week. A great experience! Mai called Bandung as Shopping Heaven, but me? I called it as City of Foods! There are thousands and thousands of foods. Staying there for a week is not enough for me to eat them! I need more time, but what can i do? There are many other great things to do in the list. So, here are some photos to be shared with you guys...

Duit rupiah yang ada.
3 millions.
A millionaire a while.
But I told you, not enough!

250610- At LCCT; departure!
the flight took me 2 hours to get there.

Flight's Nasi Ayam


Day 1

On my very first day, I ate this!
Nasi Bebek Kremes Kalasan
Bebek is Itik [Duck!]. My first time of eating itik.
Brave enough to try.

There are too many Factory Outlets [FO].
One of the FOs.
But my intention of going there was not for shopping purpose, so, not much spent at FOs.


Mai was surveying the soft lenses for her Graduation Dinner.
That was my first time of seeing the soft lenses are displayed like above.
[Maybe I was not exposed enough to this matter in Malaysia]

Can you see the crowd?
This photo was taken after an earthquake.

When it happened, I was in the shopping mall, looking at some antiques of Indonesian crafts. I could not feel the earthquake. I was startled, when everyone was running down the escalator. It was such a panicking moment that stroked me! Mai grabbed my hand, and we ran out of the mall. I was thinking that there were robberies going on. Nonsense! But no lies! I was telling you guys the truth. haha~ First time I had such a moment. Precious!

We had yogurt at J.Co!
Cooling us down after a hot run!

Pets selling outside the mall.
This is my bestfriend, Mai!
The leader of our Pong-pang Girlz group.

Kuskus.
Matanya besar.
Walaupun ia baik, jinak & manja, tapi saya tetap takut!

Mr. Chubby Grumpy


Day 2

ITB

Visitng ITB School of Pharmacy.

This is the info I got from Wikipedia about ITB;
In 1920, Pont planned and designed buildings for the first technical university in the Dutch East Indies, Technische Hogeschool te Bandung (the present-day Institut Teknologi Bandung), after which he was named as a professor in architecture at the university.

This is one of the buildings there.
Different building represents different school.
(If I'm not mistaken)

Front look.

Side look.

A striking local Javanese roof style is noticeably seen on top.

One of the attractions I found in ITB.
The best part of this was ...

these words.
Amazing!
Meaningful!
"Sekali Teman, Tetap Teman"

Naik kereta kuda to Black Maria.

Nasi Kebuli Kambing, Black Maria.
It was cone in shape.
Delicious! Yum-yum!!

My day did not end there. We walked a distance. Less than 5 minutes, if you walk like a doctor. Reached Jalan Dago! Full with factory outlets along the road. Awesome for those shopaholics! If I stay here, my cash, will definitely run like tap water!

FO

More FO

Kolam Ikan outside one of the FOs

The most fantastic about the FOs here is they have their own "musholla" or prayer's room. Praying is still, the most essential aspect in daily life. Important, still!! So, here, you don't have to worry about your prayer while you are shopping!

After went in & out of FOs, went home with angkot-angkot.

This is our main transport here; Angkot-angkot.
With Rp 1000 to Rp 2000, you can get to anywhere you want!

The best thing about this angkot-angkot is,
you will be entertained with "pemuzik jalanan"; pianist, violinist, guitarist and singer.
After the song, they will get their "paid".

This is how Bandung City looks from Mai's window.

Zooming in; you can see the arrangement of the houses.

Long list of Sundanese foods!

Simple dishes

Me and foods

Gurame Saus Padang

Bakso Kuah Sapi

sekian sahaja kembara Bandung untuk hari pertama & kedua. Insya Allah, will be sharing more about Bandung, and of coz they are all from my perspective.


Wassalam.